Today, we have a new interview for you, with Antoinette Brim, whose newest book of poetry, These Women You Gave Me, has been published by Indolent Books. Brim is a Cave Canem Foundation fellow, a recipient of the Walker Foundation Scholarship to the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, and a Pushcart Prize nominee. You can read some of her poems here and here, and you can check out our interview with her here.

Today’s prompt. In her interview, Brim provides us with several suggestions for generative writing exercises, and we’d like to challenge to today to tackle her third one, which is based in the myth of Narcissus. After reading the myth, try writing a poem that plays with the myth in some way. For example, you could imagine that imagine the water is speaking to you, the narcissus flower. Or you could write a poem in which the narcissus berates the Kardashians for stealing their neurosis. Or a poem that comments on the narcissism of our time, i.e. beauty and body obsession, etc

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Listen Ye…Listen All,

There’s a new world order…here

Narcissism it’s called

And its open to one and all…

It’s tentacles spread all over

Its followers are legion

Young, old and those in power

Narcissism deemed the new religion

The body, a temple

Self- adulation, a prayer

Love thyself, boast and brag

Selfies, a sweet Prasad

That must with all the world be shared

Not enough to be beautiful; not enough to self-admire

Likes and follows, a matter of life,

Or face death like Narcissus in a quagmire

Beauty is eternal, all Narcissists believe

Ageing, a thing of the past

Botox, Implants, plastic surgeries

Beauty must be made to last

Allegiance to self, a basic requisite

Not enough knowing that you are exquisite

Proclaim to the world and shout

Learn to smile, learn to pout

Narcissism, now every man’s faith

Narcissus is now  anointed a Saint,

His curses absolved, a flower in his name,

And you’re a misfit, if a Narcissist, you ‘aint!

Note:  Prasad is a sweet offering to God in Hindu culture which is then distributed amongst people who visit the temple

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